Attorneys for Tiger Woods announce his divorce is final

Attorneys for Tiger Woods and Elin Nordegren Woods have announced that the couple have divorced, confirming rumors that have swirled for most of 2010.

“We are sad that our marriage is over and we wish each other the very best for the future,” the couple said in a joint statement that leaves zero doubt as to where their future concerns will lie. “While we are no longer married, we are the parents of two wonderful children and their happiness has been, and will always be, of paramount importance to both of us.”
Terms of the divorce were not disclosed, but it’s likely that Elin Woods will receive a handsome financial incentive in return for her silence. Chances are it won’t approach the outlandish $750 million figure bandied about earlier this year, but once you get into 9 figures, does that first digit even matter?

Today’s news closes a chapter on a story that began last Thanksgiving, when news of Woods’ infidelities came to light. A simple one-car accident kicked off a story that alternately fascinated, disgusted and amused fans worldwide. Woods took time off from the game, spent time in a treatment facility for sex addiction, endured scathing criticism and merciless teasing, and finally returned to the course a different player.
Without speculating on the family dynamics of the Woods — and not at all to discount the effect that this will have on Woods’ children — it’s obvious that Tiger had more on his mind this last year than ever before, and it’s understandable that the off-course pressures would have had a dramatic impact on his so far very un-Tigerlike play.

We’ll leave the cheap jokes — and oh, there will be many — about what Tiger will be up to after his divorce to others. Divorce is never without pain, but perhaps this will help Tiger put 2010 behind him once and for all and move onward.